Packing container using coconut by-product, grain by-product or coffee by-product and method for producing same

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a packing container using a coconut by-product, a grain by-product, or a coffee by-product, and a method for producing same. A paper packing container produced according to the present invention enables a packing container shape to be in a complete form by adjusting the moisture content of pulp of a coconut by-product, a grain by-product, or a coffee by-product, which is an eco-friendly raw material, before entering a molding process.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a packing container using a coconutby-product, a grain by-product, or a coffee by-product and a method forproducing the same.

BACKGROUND ART

In general, a packing container having a three-dimensional shapeincluding an accommodation space is produced by molding paper pulp usingwood as a raw material.

However, using wood as a raw material causes a problem concerningdestruction of nature due to logging. In order to solve the problem, amethod for producing pulp using agar, which is an eco-friendly rawmaterial, was presented in Korean Patent No. 10-1847039.

Although the method suggested a specific method for producing pulp usingagar-agar weed, which is an eco-friendly raw material, there is nosuggestion for producing a packing container.

On the other hand, a problem has been found that the packing containermay not be easily produced in the production of general packingcontainers due to high water absorption rate of pulp.

Accordingly, there is a need for a method for producing a packingcontainer capable of adjusting the moisture in pulp by using aneco-friendly raw material.

DISCLOSURE Technical Problem

An object of the present disclosure is to provide a paper packingcontainer and a method for producing the same by adjusting the moisturein pulp made of a coconut by-product, a grain by-product, or a coffeeby-product, which is an eco-friendly raw material.

Technical Solution

In order to achieve the above object, the present disclosure provides amethod for producing a packing container using a coconut by-product, agrain by-product, or a coffee by-product, including filtering a raw pulpmaterial by filtering foreign substances from the coconut by-product,the grain by-product, or the coffee by-product, agitating the raw pulpmaterial in water to pulp the raw pulp material into by-product pulp,filling the inside of a storage apparatus with a pulp liquid containingthe by-product pulp, measuring moisture content of the pulp liquidinside the storage apparatus, adjusting the moisture content of the pulpliquid to fall within a predetermined range in the case that themeasured moisture content is out of the predetermined range, filling amold of a molding apparatus with the pulp liquid with the moisturecontent adjusted, and applying pressure to the pulp liquid in the moldto produce a molded article in a shape corresponding to the mold.

In addition, the present disclosure provides a packing containerproduced according to the production method.

Advantageous Effects

A paper packing container produced according to example embodiments ofthe present disclosure may enable a packing container shape to be in acomplete form by adjusting the moisture content of pulp including acoconut by-product, a grain by-product, or a coffee by-product pulp,which is an eco-friendly raw material, before entering a moldingprocess.

BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram to illustrate a packing containerproduction method using a coconut by-product, a grain by-product, or acoffee by-product according to an example embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart to illustrate a packing container productionmethod using a coconut by-product, a grain by-product, or a coffeeby-product according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure.

MODES FOR CARRYING OUT INVENTION

The following detailed descriptions are provided to help a comprehensiveunderstanding of methods, apparatus, and systems described herein.However, it is merely an example, and the present disclosure is notlimited thereto.

In the following descriptions, if it is determined that the detaileddescription of the known technology related to the present disclosuremay obscure the gist of the present disclosure, the detailed descriptionthereof will be omitted. In addition, the terms to be described laterare defined in consideration of functions in the present disclosure,which may vary depending on intentions or customs of users andoperators. Therefore, the definition should be given based on thecontent throughout the specification. The terms used in the detaileddescription are for the purpose of describing example embodiments of thepresent disclosure only and should not be limited in any way. Thesingular expression includes the plural expression unless the contextclearly dictates otherwise. In this description, expressions such as“including” or “comprising” are intended to indicate certain features,numbers, steps, acts, elements, some or a combination thereof, and itshould not be construed to exclude the presence or possibility of one ormore features, numbers, steps, acts, elements, or some or a combinationthereof other than those described.

In the following description, the suffixes “module” and “part” forcomponents used in the description are given or mixed in considerationof only the ease of writing the specification, and do not have distinctmeanings or functions by themselves.

Here, directional terms such as an upper side, a lower side, one side,and the other side are used with regard to the orientation of thedisclosed drawings. Since components of example embodiments of thepresent disclosure may be positioned in various orientations, thedirectional terms are used for purposes of illustration and do not limitthe same.

Also, terms such as first and second may be used for describing variouscomponents, but the components should not be limited by the terms. Theterms above may be used for the purpose of distinguishing one componentfrom other components. For example, without deviating from the scope ofthe present invention, a first component may be referred to as a secondcomponent, and similarly, a second component may also be referred to asa first component.

If a component is referred to as being “connected” or “accessed” to theother component, it may be understood that it may be directly connectedor accessed to the other component, but other components may existtherebetween. On the other hand, if it is said that a certain componentis “directly connected” or “directly accessed” to the other component,it should be understood that no other component exists therebetween.

Hereinafter, specific example embodiments of the present disclosure willbe described in detail with reference to the drawings. Regardless of thenumerals of drawings, the same or similar components are assigned withthe same reference numerals, and overlapping descriptions thereof willbe omitted. In addition, it should be understood that the accompanyingdrawings are only for easy understanding of the embodiments disclosed inthe present specification while the technical idea disclosed herein isnot limited by the accompanying drawings, and include all changes,equivalents, or substitutes included in the spirit and scope of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram to describe a method for producing apacking container using a coconut by-product, a grain by-product, or acoffee by-product according to an example embodiment of the presentdisclosure, and FIG. 2 is a flowchart to describe a method for producinga packing container using a coconut by-product, a grain by-product, or acoffee by-product according to an example embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

In the illustrated flowchart, the method is described by dividing thesame into a plurality of steps, but at least some of the steps may beperformed in a different order, performed in combination with othersteps, omitted, performed by being separated into specific steps, orperformed by adding at least one step that is not shown.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 , a method for producing seaweed pulp forpaper may include a filtering process (S110), a pulping process (S120),an inflow process (S130), a moisture content measurement process (S131),and a moisture content adjustment process (S132), a molding process(S140), and a drying process (S150).

In the filtering process (S110), only raw pulp materials may be obtainedby filtering the coconut by-product, the grain by-product, or the coffeeby-product with a filter in a filter apparatus 110. Specific details onthe filtering process (S110) are as follows.

The coconut by-products or the grain by-products are coconut husks orgrain husks, which are in an unrefined state and thus may containforeign substances. The grain may be one or more of rice, barley,soybean, red bean, millet, sesame, wheat and corn.

In addition, the coffee by-products are coffee residues left aftercoffee extraction and may contain foreign substances or moisture.

In the filtering process (S110), the raw pulp material may be obtainedby filtering foreign substances from the coconut by-product, the grainby-product, or the coffee by-product containing foreign substances inthe filter apparatus 110. The raw pulp material from which the largeforeign substances have been filtered may include fine coconut husks,grain husks, or coffee ground. The raw pulp material filtered in thefiltering process (S110) may be accommodated in a pulping apparatus 120for the pulping process (S120).

In the pulping process (S120), the raw pulp material accommodated in thepulping apparatus 120 is agitated in a liquid phase (e.g., water),thereby pulping the same into paper to form by-product pulp. Pulping maybe a process of spreading raw materials of the coconut husks, the grainhusks, or the coffee ground to a uniform concentration. In the pulpingprocess (S120), formation of the by-product pulp may be facilitated byadding a chemical catalyst into a raw pulp liquid. The specific detailsof the pulping process are as follows.

In the pulping process (S120), the raw pulp material may be suppliedfrom the filter apparatus 110 into the pulping apparatus 120. In thepulping process (S120), in order to facilitate the conversion of the rawpulp liquid into the by-product pulp, a process of cutting the coconuthusks, the grain husks, or the coffee ground of the raw pulp liquid maybe added.

In order to agitate the raw pulp liquid accommodated in the pulpingapparatus 120, a propeller provided in the pulping apparatus 120 mayrotate. The raw pulp liquid may receive kinetic energy to form aturbulent flow. The slower the rotational speed of the propelleragitating the raw pulp liquid, the lower the pulping rate of the rawpulp liquid. In the case that the rotational speed of the propeller isless than a first speed, the pulping rate of the raw pulp liquid may berapidly lowered. On the other hand, the faster the rotational speed ofthe propeller, the higher the probability of the by-products in the rawpulp liquid to be cut, so that the raw materials of the coconut husks,the grain husk, or the coffee ground may become fine. In the case thatthe rotational speed of the propeller exceeds a second speed, theprobability of the by-product of the raw pulp liquid to be cut may besharply increased. In consideration of this, the rotational speed of thepropeller may be set to 20 rpm (the first speed) to 50 rpm (the secondspeed).

In addition, in the pulping process (S120), heat may be applied to theinside of the pulping apparatus 120 in order to facilitate theconversion of the raw pulp liquid into by-product pulp. The lower theapplied thermal energy, the lower the pulping rate of the raw pulpliquid. On the other hand, the greater the applied thermal energy, thefaster the pulping rate. In consideration of this, the range of heatapplied to the pulping apparatus S120 may be set.

In addition, pressure may be applied to the inside of the pulpingapparatus 120 in order to facilitate the conversion of the raw pulpliquid into by-product pulp in the pulping process (S120). The lower theapplied pressure, the lower the conversion rate for the raw pulp liquidinto the by-product pulp. On the other hand, the higher the appliedpressure, the faster the pulping rate. In consideration of this, therange of pressure applied to the pulping apparatus S120 may be set.

In the inflow process (S130), the pulp liquid may be flowed into thestorage apparatus 130 to be stored therein. The pulp liquid may beby-product pulp that has not been subjected to the drying process afterbeing pulped in a pulp production process. The by-product pulp that hasnot been subjected to the drying process may be in a state in which theby-product pulp is uniformly dispersed in water. However, while notlimited thereto, in the inflow process (S130), dry by-product pulp andwater are separately flowed into the storage apparatus 130 to be mixed.

In the moisture content measurement process (S131), the moisture contentof the pulp liquid accommodated in the storage apparatus 130 may bemeasured. The measured moisture content may indicate whether theconcentration of the pulp liquid is in a state suitable to be molded. Inthe case that the measured moisture content falls within a predeterminedrange, the concentration of the pulp liquid may be in a state suitableto be molded.

The predetermined range of the moisture content may be set to a range inwhich the pulp liquid is sufficiently fluid to be filled in a moldingapparatus 140 but is not easily solidified. A detailed description is asfollows.

The pulp liquid with the low moisture content has reduced fluidity,making it hard to evenly fill every corner of a mold (a lower mold 142and an upper mold 141) of the molding apparatus 140. Accordingly, it maybe difficult to implement a packing container with a uniform thicknessor a packing container with a sophisticated shape in the molding process(S140). On the other hand, the pulp liquid with high moisture contenthardly enables the formation of a packing container with a completeform.

In consideration of this, the predetermined range of the appropriatemoisture content of the pulp liquid may be 30% to 50%. In the case thatthe moisture content of the pulp measured in the moisture contentmeasurement process (S131) does not fall within the predetermined range,the pulp liquid may undergo the moisture content adjustment process(S132).

In the moisture content adjustment process (S132), the moisture contentof the pulp liquid inside the storage apparatus 130 may be adjusted tobe within the predetermined range. In the moisture content adjustmentprocess (S132), in the case that the moisture content of the pulp liquidis higher than the predetermined range, heat is applied to the storageapparatus 130 accommodating the pulp liquid to evaporate moisture in thepulp liquid. The moisture content of the pulp liquid may be reduced byevaporation of the moisture in the pulp liquid. In the moisture contentadjustment process (S132), in the case that the moisture content of thepulp liquid becomes lower than an upper limit of the predeterminedrange, the application of heat to the storage apparatus 130 may behalted.

In addition, the moisture content adjustment process (S132) may involvethe evaporation of moisture by heating the pulp liquid as well as directdehydration of the pulp liquid. In the case that the moisture content ofthe pulp liquid is higher than the appropriate predetermined range,dehydration of the pulp liquid may be carried out in the moisturecontent adjustment process (S132). In the case that the moisture contentof the pulp liquid decreases and becomes lower than the upper limit ofthe predetermined range, the dehydration of the pulp liquid using thestorage apparatus 130 may be halted in the moisture content adjustmentprocess (S132).

Conversely, in the case that the moisture content of the pulp liquid islower than the predetermined range, a liquid (e.g., water) is suppliedto the storage apparatus 130 accommodating the pulp liquid to increasethe moisture content of the pulp liquid in the moisture contentadjustment process (S132). In the case that the moisture content of thepulp liquid becomes higher than a lower limit of the predeterminedrange, the supply of liquid to the storage apparatus 130 may be haltedin the moisture content adjustment process (S132).

The pulp liquid with moisture content adjusted in the storage apparatus130 may be supplied to the molding apparatus 140 to be molded in theshape of a packing container.

In the molding process (S140), a molded article may be produced byfilling the mold of the molding apparatus 140 with the pulp liquid andthen applying pressure. The molding apparatus 140 may include the lowermold 142 and the upper mold 141. The molding process (S140) may includeat least one of a wet molding process and a dry molding process. The wetmolding process and the dry molding process may be different from eachother in the way of filling the lower mold 142 with the pulp liquid. Inthe wet molding process, the lower mold 142 may be filled with the pulpliquid by making the lower mold 142 immersed in a liquid tank filledwith the pulp liquid and then raised vertically. In the dry moldingprocess, as shown in FIG. 1 , the pulp liquid may be poured directlyinto the lower mold 142.

In the molding process (S140), the moisture content of the pulp liquidmay be adjusted once more as a preventative measure before molding thepulp liquid inside the molding apparatus 140. Although the moisturecontent of the pulp liquid has already been adjusted in the moisturecontent measurement process (S131) and the moisture content adjustmentprocess (S132), moisture content of the pulp liquid may be checked andadjusted once more in the molding process (S140), in preparation for acase that the moisture content of the pulp liquid is slightly changed.However, while not limited thereto, the moisture content of the pulpliquid may be adjusted only in the molding process (S140) without themoisture content measurement process (S131) and the moisture contentadjustment process (S132).

In the molding process (S140), the moisture content of the pulp liquidinside the molding apparatus 140 may be measured. The description of themoisture content of the pulp liquid is omitted since it is the same asthe description of the moisture content of the moisture contentmeasurement process (S131). In the molding process (S140), in the casethat the moisture content of the pulp liquid is higher than thepredetermined range, the moisture in the pulp liquid may be evaporatedby applying heat to the lower mold 142 accommodating the pulp liquid.The moisture content of the pulp liquid may be reduced by evaporation ofthe moisture in the pulp liquid. In the molding process (S140), in thecase that the moisture content of the pulp liquid becomes lower than theupper limit of the predetermined range, the application of heat to thestorage apparatus 130 may be halted.

From an upper side of the lower mold 142 accommodating the pulp liquid,the pulp liquid accommodated in the lower mold 142 may be pressed as theupper mold 141 vertically descends. The pulp liquid may be pressed tobecome a molded article. In the molding process (S140), the moldedarticle may be pressed a plurality of times to adjust the thickness,density, and shape of the molded article. Specifically, the moldedarticle formed by the first pressurization of the pulp liquid may betransferred to the next lower mold, and the next upper moldcorresponding to the same may descend to press the molded article to bere-pressed. The molded article molded in the molding process (S140) maybe transferred to the drying apparatus 130 to remove moisture and toenter the drying process (S150).

In the drying process (S150), one or more of heat and wind may beapplied to the molded article transferred to the drying apparatus 150 todry the molded article. The drying apparatus 150 may be a conveyor beltthat receives the molded article from the molding apparatus 140 and adrying apparatus (blowing apparatus and heating apparatus). The moldedarticle may be dried in the drying process (S130) to become a finishedproduct.

The above detailed description should not be restrictively construed inall respects and should be considered as exemplary. In addition, it willbe apparent to those skilled in the art that the present disclosure maybe embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spiritand essential characteristics of the present disclosure. Therefore, thescope of the present disclosure should be determined by a reasonableinterpretation of the appended claims, and all modifications within theequivalent scope of the present disclosure are included in the scope ofthe present disclosure.

1. A method for producing a packing container using a coconutby-product, a grain by-product, or a coffee by-product, the methodcomprising: filtering a raw pulp material by filtering foreignsubstances from the coconut by-product, the grain by-product, or thecoffee by-product; agitating the raw pulp material in water to pulp theraw pulp material into by-product pulp; filling the inside of a storageapparatus with a pulp liquid containing the by-product pulp; measuringmoisture content of the pulp liquid inside the storage apparatus;adjusting the moisture content of the pulp liquid to fall within apredetermined range in the case that the measured moisture content isout of the predetermined range; filling a mold of a molding apparatuswith the pulp liquid with the moisture content adjusted; and applyingpressure to the pulp liquid in the mold to produce a molded article in ashape corresponding to the mold.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein thegrain is at least one grain selected from the group consisting of rice,barley, soybean, red bean, millet, sesame, wheat and corn.
 3. The methodof claim 1, wherein the adjusting of the moisture content of the pulpliquid comprises: reducing the moisture content of the pulp liquid tofall within the predetermined range by applying heat to the inside ofthe storage apparatus in the case that the moisture content is higherthan the predetermined range.
 4. The method of claim 3, wherein thereducing of the moisture content by applying the heat to the inside ofthe storage apparatus comprises: halting the heat application to theinside of the storage apparatus in the case that the moisture content isreduced and becomes lower than an upper limit of the predeterminedrange.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the adjusting of the moisturecontent of the pulp liquid comprises: reducing the moisture content ofthe pulp liquid to fall within the predetermined range by dehydratingthe pulp liquid in the case that the moisture content is higher than thepredetermined range.
 6. The method of claim 5, wherein the reducing ofthe moisture content by dehydrating the pulp liquid comprises: haltingthe dehydration of the pulp liquid in the case that the moisture contentis reduced and becomes lower than the upper limit of the predeterminedrange.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the adjusting of the moisturecontent of the pulp liquid comprises: increasing the moisture content ofthe pulp liquid to fall within the predetermined range by supplyingliquid to the pulp liquid in the case that the moisture content is lessthan the predetermined range.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein theincreasing of the moisture content by supplying the liquid to the pulpliquid comprises: halting the liquid supply to the pulp liquid in thecase that the moisture content increases and becomes higher than thelower limit of the predetermined range.
 9. A packing container producedaccording to the method of claim 1.